By Li Panpan

The worldwide semiconductor industry is projected to invest more than $500 billion in 84 large-scale chipmaking facilities starting construction from 2021 to 2023l. The Chinese mainland takes the lead with 20 facilities planned, SEMI announced in its latest quarterly World Fab Forecast report on December 13.

The seven regions in the SEMI report refer to the Americas, Europe/Mideast, the Taiwan region, Japan, Southeast Asia, South Korea, and the Chinese mainland.

The 84 facilities are with segments including automotive and high-performance computing (HPC) fueling the spending increases, said the SEMI report.

The projected growth in global factory count includes a record high of 33 new semiconductor manufacturing facilities starting construction this year and 28 more in 2023.

SEMI president and CEO Ajit Manocha said, “The report reflects the increasing strategic importance of semiconductors to countries and a wide array of industries worldwide. It underscores the significant impact of government incentives in expanding production capacity and strengthening supply chains.”

In the seven regions in the report, planned new facilities include 18 in the Americas, 17 in Europe/Mideast, 14 in the Taiwan region, 6 in Japan, 6 in Southeast Asia, and 3 in South Korea from 2012 through next year, added the report.